‘Late Shift’ Review: A Nurse’s Work is Never Done in a Tightly Wound Overnight Drama

variety.com:

Guy Lodge Film Critic There’s a thin, squiggly tattoo running down the forearm of diligent hospital nurse Floria, always visible past the short sleeves of her royal-blue scrubs, but hard to really get a look at, since her hands are constantly in motion, doggedly busy.

Occasionally, as we follow her through the exhausting nighttime rounds that make up “Late Shift,” we catch a glimpse of the ink and wonder what it is, what it means, what it says of this woman’s life outside long hours of caring for strangers.

Perhaps even Floria, bleary after hours on her feet, sometimes spots it and is reminded of who she is. Petra Volpe‘s pacy, empathetic workplace drama ostensibly shows us only its protagonist’s professional persona, though that sometimes cracks and parts to reveal a fallible human in need of some care herself.

Floria is played by Leonie Benesch, the German actor with the clear, direct gaze and straight, taut stance who recently starred as the embattled educator in “The Teachers’ Lounge” and the cool-headed translator in “September 5.” Her appearance in “Late Shift” suggests she’s become a go-to thesp for roles that pit roiling human disorder against a veneer of brisk professional capability.